John Fisher

John Fisher (19 October 1469-22 June 1535) was an English Catholic bishop, cardinal, and theologian who served as Chancellor of the University of Cambridge and Cardinal-Bishop of Rochester. He was executed by order of King Henry VIII during the English Reformation for his refusal to accept the King as head of the Church of England in favor of supporting the Pope.

Biography
John Fisher was born in Beverley, Yorkshire, England on 19 October 1469, and he studied at the University of Cambridge before becoming an ordained priest of the Catholic Church on 17 December 1491. That same year, he was elected a fellow of his college, and, in 1494, he became proctor of the university. In 1501, he became Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge University. Fisher was appointed Bishop of Rochester on 14 October 1504 at the personal insistence of King Henry VII of England, and he received a lifetime appointment as Chancellor of the University of Cambridge that same year.

When King Henry VIII attempted to divorce Queen Catherine of Aragon, Fisher became the Queen's chief supporter, believing that the king's claims of biblical justification were without merit due to the King receiving papal dispensation for his marriage. In November 1529, King Henry had Parliament began to remove some of the Church's privileges, and Fisher - a member of the House of Lords - warned Parliament that such acts could lead to the destruction of the church. In 1531, he was briefly imprisoned, and he was fined for agreeing with Cardinal Thomas Wolsey's status as papal legate. As early as 1531, he began communicating with foreign diplomats. In September 1533, communicating through Holy Roman ambassador Eustace Chapuys, he encouraged Emperor Charles V to invade England and overthrow the Tudors. In May 1535, Pope Paul III appointed Fisher to the College of Cardinals, but King Henry forbade the cardinal's hat from being brought to England, and he instead condemned Fisher to be hanged, drawn, and quartered at Tyburn a month later.